Shehbaz demands re-bidding of Mohmand Dam, raises question over transparency

ISLAMABAD: Opposition Leader Shehbaz Sharif on Monday demanded re-bidding of Rs309 billion Mohmand Dam in light of its controversial allotment to the joint venture of Descon owned by Adviser to PM on Commerce, Textile, Industry and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood and Chinese company, China Gezhouba.

“There are now huge questions on financial transparency of the project,” the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader said in his address at the national assembly.

Shehbaz said that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government gave the contract after the process started by the PML-N government.

“PEPRA though allows single bid, the dam construction can take five to six years so why there was so urgency in awarding the contract. The process could have been re-started,” he said. ” Heavens won’t have fallen on re-bidding. It’s a matter of Rs309 billion.”

Shehbaz said that the load-shedding crisis was at its peak when the PML-N came into power, millions were getting unemployed. “No single government can be held responsible for the situation,” he said.

“We resolved the load shedding crisis on the war footing. Set up three LNG projects, and laid the foundation for the fourth one. We saved Rs160 billion of the national exchequer,” he added.

Shehbaz warned that the energy crisis is once again hitting the nation.

“This is government’s incompetence that it’s providing expensive electricity from furnace oil, while the government is not running gas power plants with 100 per cent productivity,” he said.

Shehbaz said that the dam construction is a need of the hour, and during the PML-N government’s tenure as many as Rs200 billion were allocated for it.